"My hypothesis is that what all the events precipitating the Tea Party movement share is that they demonstrated, emphatically and unconditionally, the depths of the absolute dependence of us all on government action, and in so doing they undermined the deeply held fiction of individual autonomy and self-sufficiency that are intrinsic parts of Americans’ collective self-understanding."

"My hypothesis is that what all the events precipitating the Tea Party movement share is that they demonstrated, emphatically and unconditionally, the depths of the absolute dependence of us all on government action, and in so doing they undermined the deeply held fiction of individual autonomy and self-sufficiency that are intrinsic parts of Americans’ collective self-understanding."

Key word fiction.

We need each other and collective action can be more effective.

Even the Lakers needed more than Bryant tonight.

Informed by Data.Driven by the SPIRIT and JESUS’s Example.Promoting the Kingdom of GOD on Earth.

"My hypothesis is that what all the events precipitating the Tea Party movement share is that they demonstrated, emphatically and unconditionally, the depths of the absolute dependence of us all on government action, and in so doing they undermined the deeply held fiction of individual autonomy and self-sufficiency that are intrinsic parts of Americans’ collective self-understanding."

In other words, the Tea Party guys are actually the preserve of the liberals, without that un-saintly twinge of anger, of course.

What I am convinced that the Tea Party Movement has done is tap into the anger that seems to predominate in our culture. We are in a time when people are angry over the economy, over wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that have lasted longer than WWI and WWII combined, over the spiraling change that seems to threaten their world at every turn, and over the fact that everything on which they thought they depended including the idea that the church would always be there in the form it was for granddad is part of the fabric of society. Jobs that were once the mainstays of our economy have been exported--manufacturing, metals, and textiles. The Tea Party seems to be a pressure valve that is giving people a place to "pop off."

"God will never be less than He is and does not need to be more" (John Koessler)

My father-in-law is running for County Judge here. I've noticed that quite a few of his "fans" on Facebook are active Tea Partiers. Because of his Tea Party support, he was interviewed by the local newspaper reporter who covers the local races - the reporter tried to get my father-in-law to describe himself as a Tea Party Democrat.

He wouldn't do it because he really shares very little in common with the Tea Party crowd. The County Judge is basically a full-time CEO of sorts of the county (not a traditional judge) who has a spot on the 5-member Commissioners court. His campaign has emphasized "responsible government" and "open government." The incumbent has been less than transparent and involved in bad business deals for the county (not fiscally responsible). So, he's trying to ride the anti-incumbent wave that clearly exists in this area. And those themes of transparency and fiscal responsibility do seem to resonate with both Democrats and Tea Partiers at the local level.

Not sure how far that will take him though. It's a tight rope to walk. On the one hand you want all the votes you can get - including the Tea Party vote. On the other hand, you definitely don't want to get tapped as a Tea Partier.

What the Tea Party appears to be doing, across the country, is helping a lot of candidates in Republican primaries defeat incumbents or moderate Republicans. Most polls are showing that, when this happens, it usually benefits whoever the Democrat candidate is on the other side of the race.

I'm wondering if the anti-incumbent mood has had an effect in the governor's race in Texas. The Democrat, Bill White, has pushed fiscal responsibility and has pointed out that Perry misses an inordinate number of days on the job, as well as his spending on things related to his own personal office. He's slowly chipped away at Perry's lead in the polls, appears to be leading among independent voters, and has, within the last week, moved into a tie in the polls, unheard of in heavily Republican, conservative Texas.

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) - Voters in South Carolina nominated a black Republican lawmaker for an open congressional seat Tuesday, rejecting a legendary political name and adding diversity to the national party.

State Rep. Tim Scott defeated Paul Thurmond, an attorney who is son of the one-time segregationist U.S. Sen. Strom Thurmond. Scott, who won the runoff with 69 percent of the vote, is now poised to become the nation's first black GOP congressman since 2003.

Now how can this be? We all know of the racist (i.e. angry white male) elements in the Tea Party, right? ( ). The guy won with 69% of the vote...with "racist" Tea Party backing? Is the hate and anger so great in the Tea Party that in South Carolina folks couldn't see straight and they picked a black man over a white man -- and over a man who had "legendary" name recognition????? According to the article, Scott will be strongly favored over a black Dem in the election.

Well, it won't be long before the label makers are fired up and start cranking out the "acting white", "Uncle Tom" and "traitor to his race" slogans. Not from our little corner of the internet, mind you, but it will come none the less, as sure as "heaven is sweet, hell is hot and Jesus saves".

Timothy Bonney wrote:Every race won't be effected by the Tea Party ET. But I've seen coverage in which racial slurs were shouted out in Tea Party rallies. It has been reported. So win or lose, the Tea Partyers have attracted angry voters for both good and ill.

That's right, the Tea Party won't affect every race, but as there has been an ongoing attempt to paint it as heavily influenced by racism, I find it ironic that a person that would supposedly be the target of such racism is running on a platform that gained the favor of the local tea party in his area and running as a conservative Republican

I also find it amusing all this concern over "angry voters". Absolutely nothing wrong with angry voters. Every now and then I still see a bumper sticker - probably left over from the Bush years - that says "if you're not angry, you're not paying attention" or something like that. Most conservatives would feel the same way today.

No matter the cause, there is almost always some fringe elements that end up tagging along for the ride, whether it be the Tea Party or anti-war marches or protests against the world bank. Had George Bush been a minority, I have absolutely no doubt whatsoever that he would have been the subject of racist language. The anger directed at Obama pales in comparison to some of the garbage hurled at Bush. One doesn't make the other right, but far more concern is shown for the "hate" ( ) directed at Obama than at anything ever directed at Bush.